Lost In the Land Without Rain (What If)
This story tells what would probably happened if Bianca didn't die (by AdamantiumBladez) Characters Percy Jackson Bianca di Angelo Thalia Grace Zoë Nightshade Grover Underwood Nico di Angelo Story We Visit The Junkyard Of The Gods Percy's P.O.V. The monster raised his sword to smash Grover. Then he froze. Talos cocked his head to one side, like he was hearing strange new music. He started moving his arms and legs in weird ways, doing the Funky Chicken. Then he made a fist and punched himself in the face. "Go, Bianca!" I yelled. Zoe looked horrified. "She is inside?" The monster staggered around, and I realized we were still in danger. Thalia and I grabbed Grover and ran with him toward the highway. Zoe was already ahead of us. She yelled, "How will Bianca get out?” The giant hit itself in the head again and dropped his sword. A shudder ran through his whole body and he staggered toward the power lines. "Look out!" I yelled, but it was too late. The giant's ankle snared the lines, and blue flickers of electricity shot up his body. I hoped the inside was insulated. I had no idea what was going on in there. The giant careened back into the junkyard, and his right hand fell off, landing in the scrap metal with a horrible CLANG! His left arm came loose, too. He was falling apart at the joints. Talos began to run. "Wait!" Zoe yelled. We ran after him, but there was no way we could keep up. Pieces of the robot kept falling off, getting in our way. The giant crumbled from the top down: his head, his chest, and finally, his legs collapsed. When we reached the wreckage we searched frantically, yelling Bianca's name. We crawled around in the vast hollow pieces and the legs and the head. We searched until the sun started to rise, but no luck. Zoe sat down and wept. I was stunned to see her cry. Thalia yelled in rage and impaled her sword in the giant's smashed face. "We can keep searching," I said. "It's light now. We'll find her.” "No we won't," Grover said miserably. "It happened just as it was supposed to.” "What are you talking about?" I demanded. He looked up at me with big watery eyes. "The prophecy. One shall he lost in the land without rain.” Why hadn't I seen it? Why had I let her go instead of me? Here we were in the desert. And Bianca di Angelo was gone. Lost In The Desert Alone Bianca's P.O.V. I finally woke up with my head still slightly spinning, I probably should have just left that statue alone and then we wouldn't of had to fight that Talos thing. I worked my way out of the wreckage, I had a few cuts and grazes, but apart from that, I was ok. I cleared my way to the surface and looked around for someone waiting for me, but there was no one there. "Zoë! Thalia! Grover! Percy! Per-cy?" I kept looking for anyone, but I couldn't even hear a reply for any of them. I couldn't believe that they would just leave me here alone, didn't they have the decentsy to even dig me out? No. I looked at the ground and found the statue of Hades lying on the ground, I was still alive I thought So I will get this back for Nico. As I reached for the statue, a small source of light appeared, I had no idea where it came from, until I looked up . . . "Ahh!" I screamed at the sight of a floating hologram of a flaming skull above my head. I had heard from campers that this was called claiming, but I had no idea whose symbol that was. I put the staue into my pocket, but then a shadowy form appearec in front of me with two skeletonal gaurds next to him. I had just had enough of skeletons and yelled "Va Fa Napoli" which means 'go to hell' in Italian. I actually learnt some Italian since I found out about mine and Nico's Italian ancestry, i used to pick up a few insults when people began to pester me and Nico. Strangely as I said those words, the skeletons fell back into the ground, leaving the shadowy figure still forming. "You sound alot like your mother" it said. I stepped back nervously as the figure finished forming into a tall albino man with intense black eyes. He also had shoulder-length black hair and a beard. He was wearing black silk robes like he was in his PJ's. I looed at his face, and then took out the figure and looked at the simularities between them "Hades?" He stroked his beard with one hand with the other held his other elbow "I believe the word these days kids use to adress guys like me is 'dad' ". I looked at this man in surprise, his eyes and hair were like mine, though I thought Nico looked more like him than me. I decided that I wouldn't be inpolite seeing he was my dad, dispite everything Percy said about him, he was still family. "Listen dad, as much as I'm happy about seeing you, I have a quest to finish." "I know. But I will not allow you to continue." "What!? You can't just tell me to stop while we're half way through it!" "Look, I don't want to lose you like I did with your mother, you are the only thing I have to remember her by. I can't lose you like I lost her". "But dad, I have to do this, my friends are counting on me." Although he was reluctant to leave, he began to evapourate "I will let you carry on if it means that much to you, but make sure you stay alive, if not for me, for your brother". I had almost forgot completly that I would leave Nico alone by himslef if I died. I couldn't lt that happen. My dad then vanished into a shadow of black smoke. I looked up at the sky like Zoë said to do and I looked out West. I knew that my friends would be on there way, and I would be there with them. "I will father" I said to myself and I walked on. We Meet The Dragon With Eternally Bad Breath Percy's P.O.V. It was along time after we let Bessie and Grover go down the stream that we ended up in the Garden of the Hesperides. We walked close to the Ladon quietly as we drew in closer to the Tree with the golden fruit. "The apples of immortality," Thalia said. "Hera's wedding gift from Zeus.” I wanted to step right up and pluck one, except for the dragon coiled around the tree. Now, I don't know what you think of when I say dragon. Whatever it is, it's not scary enough. The serpent's body was as thick as a booster rocket, glinting with coppery scales. He had more heads than I could count, as if a hundred deadly pythons had been fused together. He appeared to be asleep. The heads lay curled in a big spaghetti-like mound on the grass, all the eyes closed. Then the shadows in front of us began to move. There was a beautiful, eerie singing, like voices from the bottom of a well. I reached for Riptide, but Zoe stopped my hand. Four figures shimmered into existence, four young women who looked very much like Zoe. They all wore white Greek chitons. Their skin was like caramel. Silky black hair tumbled loose around their shoulders. It was strange, but I'd never realized how beautiful Zoe was until I saw her siblings, the Hesperides. They looked just like Zoe—gorgeous, and probably very dangerous. "Sisters," Zoe said. "We do not see any sister," one of the girls said coldly. "We see two half-bloods and a Hunter. All of whom shall soon die.” "You've got it wrong." I stepped forward. "Nobody is going to die.” The girls studied me. They had eyes like volcanic rock, glassy and completely black. "Perseus Jackson," one of them said. "Yes," mused another. "I do not see why he is a threat.” "Who said I was a threat?” The first Hesperid glanced behind her, toward the top of the mountain. "They fear thee. They are unhappy that this one has not yet killed thee.” She pointed at Thalia. "Tempting sometimes," Thalia admitted. "But no, thanks. He's my friend.” "There are no friends here, daughter of Zeus," the girl said. "Only enemies. Go back.” "Not without Annabeth," Thalia said. "And Artemis," Zoe said. "We must approach the mountain.” "You know he will kill thee," the girl said. "You are no match for him.” "Artemis must be freed," Zoe insisted. "Let us pass.” The girl shook her head. "You have no rights here anymore. We have only to raise our voices and Ladon will wake.” "He will not hurt me," Zoe said. "No? And what about thy so-called friends?” Then Zoe did the last thing I expected. She shouted, "Ladon! Wake!” The dragon stirred, glittering like a mountain of pennies. The Hesperides yelped and scattered. The lead girl said to Zoe, "Are you mad?” "You never had any courage, sister," Zoe said. "That is thy problem.” The dragon Ladon was writhing now, a hundred heads whipping around, tongues flickering and tasting the air. Zoe took a step forward, her arms raised. "Zoe, don't," Thalia said. "You're not a Hesperid anymore. He'll kill you.” "Ladon is trained to protect the tree," Zoe said. "Skirt around the edges of the garden. Go up the mountain. As long as I am a bigger threat, he should ignore thee.” "Should," I said. "Not exactly reassuring.” "It is the only way," she said. "Even the three of us together cannot fight him.” Ladon opened his mouths. The sound of a hundred heads hissing at once sent a shiver down my back, and that was before his breath hit me. The smell was like acid. It made my eyes burn, my skin crawl, and my hair stand on end. I remembered the time a rat had died inside our apartment wall in New York in the middle of the summer. This stench was like that, except a hundred times stronger, and mixed with the smell of chewed eucalyptus. I promised myself right then that I would never ask a school nurse for another cough drop. I wanted to draw my sword. But then I remembered my dream of Zoe and Hercules, and how Hercules had failed in a head-on assault. I decided to trust Zoe's judgment. Thalia went left. I went right. Zoe walked straight toward the monster. "It's me, my little dragon," Zoe said. "Zoe has come back.” Ladon shifted forward, then back. Some of the mouths closed. Some kept hissing. Dragon confusion. Meanwhile, the Hesperides shimmered and turned into shadows. The voice of the eldest whispered, "Fool." "I used to feed thee by hand," Zoe continued, speaking in a soothing voice as she stepped toward the golden tree. "Do you still like lamb's meat?” The dragon's eyes glinted. Thalia and I were about halfway around the garden. Ahead, I could see a single rocky trail leading up to the black peak of the mountain. The storm swirled above it, spinning on the summit like it was the axis for the whole world. We'd almost made it out of the meadow when something went wrong. I felt the dragon's mood shift. Maybe Zoe got too close. Maybe the dragon realized he was hungry. Whatever the reason, he lunged at Zoe. Two thousand years of training kept her alive. She dodged one set of slashing fangs and tumbled under another, weaving through the dragon's heads as she ran in our direction, gagging from the monster's horrible breath. I drew Riptide to help. "No!" Zoe panted. "Run!” I watched as the Ladon closed in to take a snap at Zoe, but then out of no where a whole army of skeletons charged the Ladon and began to hack at it with swords and axes. Usually when a bunch of enemies come to save your life, they just usually want to kill you themselves instead of losing it to another monster. "No" cried out the lead girl "What kind of creature could possibly control such demons?" "A daughter of Hades can!" I looked up across the garden at a figure in hunters uniform, with a new Stygian Iron arrow locked into her bow. I couldn't believe my eyes that I almost broke into tears at the sight I saw: This wasn't the shy girl struggling to look after her little brother alone we found at a school in winter, this was Bianca di Angelo, the daughter of Hades. Becoming General Of The Dead Bianca's P.O.V. I just entered the battlefield where my Lieutenant was about to be losing her thigh from a giant snake, I wasted no time to summon an army of skeletons to her aid, just in time I might add. "No" cried out one of the girls I presumed was a Hesperid "What kind of creature could possibly control such demons?" "A daughter of Hades can!" I loaded up my bow and fired it at her, she disappeared like she was drained into the metal. Thalia, Zoe and Percy looked round in surprise, I could easily tell they were happy to see me. I rushed forward towards them and aimed my bow at the other Hesperids. "Leave my friends alone and let us pass!" I demanded. The girls wasted no time but to retreat as fast as they could, just as well as the soliders had just finished off the Ladon and sank back into the ground. Zoe walked up to me and placed her hand on my shoulder "Fine work there Bianca. There could be a promotion waiting for thee when we get back to thy camp". "Thanks" I said. "How did you survive?" Thalia asked "The prophecy said ''''One shall be lost in the land without rain and prophecies always come true. Why didn't it affect you?"'' I had to think about it, but I was still clueless. "I have no idea. By the time I woke up, you guys were gone and I felt really lost until . . ." "Lost! Ohhhh, that's what it meant" Percy exclaimed. We all turned to him for his explanation "The prophecy wasn't speaking of losing her 'lost', but about her literally being 'lost'. Not gone lost, lost lost." We contiued up towards the mountain towards were Atals was, with a sandy haired boy I found out was Luke, next to him on the floor was Annabeth, but she was weak and frail like an elderly woman. Zoe and Atlas engaged into a war of words, until Percy intervened and then Atalas said about finishing us off, starting with Zoe. "You're not going to hurt Zoe" Percy said. "I won't let you.” Atals sneered at his remark. "You have no right to interfere, little hero. This is a family matter." Percy frowned, as did I. "A family matter?” I said. "Yes," Zoe said bleakly. "Atlas is my father.” I Put On A Few Extra MIllion Pounds Percy's P.O.V. The horrible thing was: I could see the family resemblance. Atlas had the same regal expression as Zoe, the same cold proud look in his eyes that Zoe sometimes got when she was mad, though on him it looked a thousand times more evil. He was all the things I'd originally disliked about Zoe, with none of the good I'd come to appreciate. "Let Artemis go," Zoe demanded. Atlas walked closer to the chained goddess. "Perhaps you'd like to take the sky for her, then? Be my guest.” Zoe opened her mouth to speak, but Artemis said, "No! Do not offer, Zoe! I forbid you.” Atlas smirked. He knelt next to Artemis and tried to touch her face, but the goddess bit at him, almost taking off his fingers. "Hoo-hoo," Atlas chuckled. "You see, daughter? Lady Artemis likes her new job. I think I will have all the Olympians take turns carrying my burden, once Lord Kronos rules again, and this is the center of our palace. It will teach those weaklings some humility.” I looked at Annabeth. She was desperately trying to tell me something. She motioned her head toward Luke. But all I could do was stare at her. I hadn't noticed before, but something about her had changed. Her blond hair was now streaked with gray. "From holding the sky," Thalia muttered, as if she'd read my mind. "The weight should've killed her.” "I don't understand," Bianca said. "Why can't Artemis just let go of the sky?” Atlas laughed. "How little you understand, young one. This is the point where the sky and the earth first met, where Ouranos and Gaia first brought forth their mighty children, the Titans. The sky still yearns to embrace the earth. Someone must hold it at bay, or else it would crush down upon this place, instantly flattening the mountain and everything within a hundred leagues. Once you have taken the burden, there is no escape." Atlas smiled. "Unless someone else takes it from you.” He approached us, studying Thalia and me. "So these are the best heroes of the age, eh? Not much of a challenge.” "Fight us," I said. "And let's see." "Have the gods taught you nothing? An immortal does not fight a mere mortal directly. It is beneath our dignity. I will have Luke crush you instead.” "So you're another coward," I said. Atlas's eyes glowed with hatred. He turned towards Bianca "I know about you as well, daughter of Hades. Once I have crushed the other two, hopefully we can turn you. If not, your brother might be more willing than you." With difficulty, he turned his attention to Thalia. "As for you, daughter of Zeus, it seems Luke was wrong about you.” "I wasn't wrong," Luke managed. He looked terribly weak, and he spoke every word as if it were painful. If I didn't hate his guts so much, I almost would've felt sorry for him. "Thalia, you still can join us. Call the Ophiotaurus. It will come to you. Look!” He waved his hand, and next to us a pool of water appeared: a pond ringed in black marble, big enough for the Ophiotaurus. I could imagine Bessie in that pool. In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I was sure I could hear Bessie mooing. Don't think about him! Suddenly Grover's voice was inside my mind—the empathy link. I could feel his emotions. He was on the verge of panic. I'm losing Bessie. Block the thoughts! I tried to make my mind go blank. I tried to think about basketball players, skateboards, the different kinds of candy in my mom's shop. Anything but Bessie. "Thalia, call the Ophiotaurus," Luke persisted. "And you will be more powerful than the gods.” "Luke…" Her voice was full of pain. "What happened to you?” "Don't you remember all those times we talked? All those times we cursed the gods? Our fathers have done nothing for us. They have no right to rule the world!” Thalia shook her head. "Free Annabeth. Let her go.” "If you join me," Luke promised, "it can be like old times. The three of us together. Fighting for a better world. Please, Thalia, if you don't agree…” His voice faltered. "It's my last chance. He will use the other way if you don't agree. Please.” I didn't know what he meant, but the fear in his voice sounded real enough. I believed that Luke was in danger. His life depended on Thalia's joining his cause. And I was afraid Thalia might believe it, too. "Do not, Thalia," Zoe warned. "We must fight them.” "She's right" Bianca agreed. "He's the bad guy, you cannot trust bad guys!" Luke waved his hand again, and a fire appeared. A bronze brazier, just like the one at camp. A sacrificial flame. "Thalia," I said. "No.” Behind Luke, the golden sarcophagus began to glow. As it did, I saw images in the mist all around us: black marble walls rising, the ruins becoming whole, a terrible and beautiful palace rising around us, made of fear and shadow. "We will raise Mount Othrys right here," Luke promised, in a voice so strained it was hardly his. "Once more, it will be stronger and greater than Olympus. Look, Thalia. We are not weak.” He pointed toward the ocean, and my heart fell. Marching up the side of the mountain, from the beach where the Princess Andromeda was docked, was a great army. Dracaenae and Laestrygonians, monsters and half-bloods, hell hounds, harpies, and other things I couldn't even name. The whole ship must've been emptied, because there were hundreds, many more than I'd seen on board last summer. And they were marching toward us. In a few minutes, they would be here. "This is only a taste of what is to come," Luke said. "Soon we will be ready to storm Camp Half-Blood. And after that, Olympus itself. All we need is your help.” For a terrible moment, Thalia hesitated. She gazed at Luke, her eyes full of pain, as if the only thing she wanted in the world was to believe him. Then she leveled her spear. "You aren't Luke. I don't know you anymore.” "Yes, you do, Thalia," he pleaded. "Please. Don't make me… Don't make him destroy you.” There was no time. If that army got to the top of the hill, we would be overwhelmed. I met Annabeth's eyes again. She nodded. I looked at Thalia and Zoe, and I decided it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to die fighting with friends like this. "Now," I said. Together, we charged. Thalia went straight for Luke. The power of her shield was so great that his dragon-women bodyguards fled in a panic, dropping the golden coffin and leaving him alone. But despite his sickly appearance, Luke was still quick with his sword. He snarled like a wild animal and counterattacked. When his sword, Backbiter, met Thalia's shield, a ball of lightning erupted between them, frying the air with yellow tendrils of power. As for me, I did the stupidest thing in my life, which is saying a lot. I attacked the Titan Lord Atlas. He laughed as I approached. A huge javelin appeared in his hands. His silk suit melted into full Greek battle armor. "Go on, then!" "Percy!" Zoe said. "Beware!” I knew what she was warning me about. Chiron had told me long ago: Immortals are constrained by ancient rules. But a hero can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as he has the nerve. Once I attacked, however, Atlas was free to attack back directly, with all his might. I swung my sword, and Atlas knocked me aside with the shaft of his javelin. I flew through the air and slammed into a black wall. It wasn't Mist anymore. The palace was rising, brick by brick. It was becoming real. "Fool!" Atlas screamed gleefully, swatting aside one of Zoe's arrows. "Did you think, simply because you could challenge that petty war god, that you could stand up to me?” The mention of Ares sent a jolt through me. I shook off my daze and charged again. If I could get to that pool of water, I could double my strength. The javelins point slashed toward me like a scythe. I raised Riptide, planning to cut off his weapon at the shaft, but my arm felt like lead. My sword suddenly weighed a ton. And I remembered Ares's warning, spoken on the beach in Los Angeles so long ago: When you need it most, your sword will fail you. Not now! I pleaded. But it was no good. I tried to dodge, but the javelin caught me in the chest and sent me flying like a rag doll. I slammed into the ground, my head spinning. I looked up and found I was at the feet of Artemis, still straining under the weight of the sky. "Run, boy," she told me. "You must run!” Atlas was taking his time coming toward me. My sword was gone. It had skittered away over the edge of the cliff. It might reappear in my pocket—maybe in a few seconds—but it didn't matter. I'd be dead by then. Luke and Thalia were fighting like demons, lightning crackling around them. Annabeth was on the ground, desperately struggling to free her hands. "Die, little hero," Atlas said. He raised his javelin to impale me. "No!" Zoe yelled, and a volley of silver arrows sprouted from the armpit chink in Atlas's armor. "ARGH!" He bellowed and turned toward his daughter. Bianca summoned dead warriors at his feet to try and draw his attention, but he kicked and stepped on them to get rid of them. I reached down and felt Riptide back in my pocket. I couldn't fight Atlas, even with a sword. And then a chill went down my back. I remembered the words of the prophecy: The Titan's curse must one withstand. I couldn't hope to beat Atlas. But there was someone else who might stand a chance. "The sky," I told the goddess. "Give it to me." "No, boy," Artemis said. Her forehead was beaded with metallic sweat, like quicksilver. "You don't know what you're asking. It will crush you!” "Annabeth took it!” "She barely survived. She had the spirit of a true huntress. You will not last so long.” "I'll die anyway," I said. "Give me the weight of the sky!” I didn't wait for her answer. I took out Riptide and slashed through her chains. Then I stepped next to her and braced myself on one knee—holding up my hands—and touched the cold, heavy clouds. For a moment, Artemis and I bore the weight together. It was the heaviest thing I'd ever felt, as if I were being crushed under a thousand trucks. I wanted to black out from the pain, but I breathed deeply. I can do this. Then Artemis slipped out from under the burden, and I held it alone. Afterward, I tried many times to explain what it felt like. I couldn't. Every muscle in my body turned to fire. My bones felt like they were melting. I wanted to scream, but I didn't have the strength to open my mouth. I began to sink, lower and lower to the ground, the sky's weight crushing me. My vision turned fuzzy. Everything was tinged with red. I caught glimpses of the battle, but I wasn't sure if I was seeing clearly. There was Atlas in full battle armor, jabbing with his javelin, laughing insanely as he fought. And Artemis, a blur of silver. She had two wicked hunting knives, each as long as her arm, and she slashed wildly at the Titan, dodging and leaping with unbelievable grace. She seemed to change form as she maneuvered. Or perhaps that was just my fevered brain. Zoe shot arrows at her father while Bianca tried the same, aiming for the chinks in his armor. He roared in pain each time one found its mark, but they affected him like bee stings. He just got madder and kept fighting. Sweat poured down my face. My hands were slippery. My shoulders would've screamed with agony if they could. I felt like the vertebrae in my spine were being welded together by a blowtorch. Atlas advanced, pressing Artemis. She was fast, but his strength was unstoppable. His javelin slammed into the earth where Artemis had been a split second before, and a fissure opened in the rocks. He leaped over it and kept pursuing her. She was leading him back toward me. Get ready, she spoke in my mind. I was losing the ability to think through the pain. My response was something like Agggghh-owwwwwwww. "You fight well for a girls." Atlas laughed. "But you are no match for me.” He feinted with the tip of his javelin and Artemis dodged. I saw the trick coming. Atlas's javelin swept around and knocked Artemis's legs off the ground. She fell, and Atlas brought up his javelin tip for the kill. "No!" Zoe screamed. She leaped between her father and Artemis and shot an arrow straight into the Titan's forehead, where it lodged like a unicorn's horn. Atlas bellowed in rage. He swept aside his daughter with the back of his hand, sending her flying into the black rocks. I wanted to shout her name, run to her aid, but I couldn't speak or move. I couldn't even see where Zoe had landed. Then Atlas turned on Artemis with a look of triumph in his face. Artemis seemed to be wounded. She didn't get up. Bianca rushed to Zoe's side while she was dripping in blood. "The first blood in a new war," Atlas gloated. And he stabbed downward. As fast as thought, Artemis grabbed his javelin shaft. It hit the earth right next to her and she pulled backward, using the javelin like a lever, kicking the Titan Lord and sending him flying over her, I saw him coming down on top of me and I realized what would happen. I loosened my grip on the sky, and as Atlas slammed into me I didn't try to hold on. I let myself be pushed out of the way and rolled for all I was worth. The weight of the sky dropped onto Atlas's back, almost smashing him flat until he managed to get to his knees, struggling to get out from under the crushing weight of the sky. But it was too late. "Noooooo!" He bellowed so hard it shook the mountain. "Not again!” I tried to stand and fell back again, dazed from pain. My body felt like it was burning up. Thalia had just put her spear point to Lukes throat. For a moment, there was silence. "Well?" Luke asked. He tried to hide it, but I could hear fear in his voice. Thalia trembled with fury. Behind her, Annabeth came scrambling, finally free from her bonds. Her face was bruised and streaked with dirt. "Don't kill him!” "He's a traitor," Thalia said. "A traitor!” In my daze, I realized that Artemis was no longer with me. She had run off toward the black rocks where Zoe had fallen. "We'll bring Luke back," Annabeth pleaded. "To Olympus. He… he'll be useful.” "Is that what you want, Thalia?" Luke sneered. "To go back to Olympus in triumph? To please your dad?” Thalia hesitated, and Luke made a desperate grab for her spear. "No!" Annabeth shouted. But it was too late. Without thinking, Thalia kicked Luke away. He lost his balance, terror on his face, and then he fell. "Luke!" Annabeth screamed. We rushed to the cliff's edge. Below us, the army from the Princess Andromeda had stopped in amazement. They were staring at Luke's broken form on the rocks. Despite how much I hated him, I couldn't stand to see it. I wanted to believe he was still alive, but that was impossible. The fall was fifty feet at least, and he wasn't moving. One of the giants looked up and growled, "Kill them!” Thalia was stiff with grief, tears streaming down her cheeks. I pulled her back as a wave of javelins sailed over our heads. We ran for the rocks, ignoring the curses and threats of Atlas as we passed. "Artemis!" I yelled. The goddess looked up, her face almost as grief-stricken as Thalia's. Zoe lay in the goddess's arms. She was breathing. Her eyes were open. But still… "The wound is poisoned," Artemis said. "Atlas poisoned her?" I asked. "I'm afraid so," the goddess said. "Not even my brother could possibly save her now." She showed us the wound in Zoe's side. She had charged into battle against her father and gained a horrible cut which was already sapping her strength. "The stars," Zoe murmured. "I cannot see them.” "Nectar and ambrosia," I said. "Come on! We have to get her some.” No one moved. Grief hung in air. The army of Kronos was just below the rise. Even Artemis was too shocked to stir. We might've met our doom right there, but then I heard a strange buzzing noise. Just as the army of monsters came over the hill, a Sopwith Camel swooped down out of the sky. "Get away from my daughter!" Dr. Chase called down, and his machine guns burst to life, peppering the ground with bullet holes and startling the whole group of monsters into scattering. "Dad?" yelled Annabeth in disbelief. "Run!" he called back, his voice growing fainter as the biplane swooped by. This shook Artemis out of her grief. She stared up at the antique plane, which was now banking around for another strafe. "A brave man," Artemis said with grudging approval. "Come, We must get Zoe away from here.” She raised her hunting horn to her lips, and its clear sound echoed down the valleys of Marin. Zoe's eyes were fluttering. "Hang in there!" I told her. "It'll be all right!” The Sopwith Camel swooped down again. A few giants threw javelins, and one flew straight between the wings of the plane, but the machine guns blazed. I realized with amazement that somehow Dr. Chase must've gotten hold of celestial bronze to fashion his bullets. The first row of snake women wailed as the machine gun's volley blew them into sulfurous yellow powder. "That's… my dad!" Annabeth said in amazement. We didn't have time to admire his flying. The giants and snake women were already recovering from their surprise. Dr. Chase would be in trouble soon. Just then, the moonlight brightened, and a silver chariot appeared from the sky, drawn by the most beautiful deer I had ever seen. It landed right next to us. "Get in," Artemis said. Annabeth helped me get Thalia on board. Then I helped Bianca and Artemis with Zoe. We wrapped Zoe in a blanket as Artemis pulled the reins and the chariot sped away from the mountain, straight into the air. "Like Santa Claus's sleigh," Bianca murmured. Artemis took time to look back at me. "Indeed, young half-blood. And where do you think that legend came from?” Seeing us safely away, Dr. Chase turned his biplane and followed us like an honor guard. It must have been one of the strangest sights ever, even for the Bay Area: a silver flying chariot pulled by deer, escorted by a Sopwith Camel. Behind us, the army of Kronos roared in anger as they gathered on the summit of Mount Tamalpais, but the loudest sound was the voice of Atlas, bellowing curses against the gods as he struggled under the weight of the sky. My Promotion Comes At A Price Bianca's P.O.V. I looked over at Zoe, she seemed to be in so much pain. She even seemed to be halusinating. "Can't you heal her with magic?" I asked Artemis. "I mean… you're a goddess.” Artemis looked troubled. "Life is a fragile thing, Bianca. If the Fates will the string to be cut, there is little I can do. But I can try.” She tried to set her hand on Zoe's side, but Zoe gripped her wrist. She looked into the goddess's eyes, and some kind of understanding passed between them. "Have I… served thee well?" Zoe whispered. "With great honor," Artemis said softly. "The finest of my attendants.” Zoe's face relaxed. "Rest. At last.” "I can try to heal the poison, my brave one.” But in that moment, I knew it wasn't just the poison that was killing her. It was her father's final blow. Zoe had known all along that the Oracle's prophecy was about her: she would die by a parent's hand. And yet she'd taken the quest anyway. She had chosen to save me, and Atlas's fury had broken her inside. She saw Thalia, and took her hand. "I am sorry we argued," Zoe said. "We could have been sisters.” "It's my fault," Thalia said, blinking hard. "You were right about Luke, about heroes, men—everything.” "Perhaps not all men," Zoe murmured. She smiled weakly at Percy. "Do you still have the sword?” Percy brought out his pen and put it in her hands. "You spoke the truth, Percy Jackson. You are nothing like… like Hercules. I am honored that you carry this sword.” A shudder ran through her body. "Zoe—" Percy said. "Stars," she whispered. "I can see the stars again, my lady.” A tear trickled down Artemis's cheek. "Yes, my brave one. They are beautiful tonight.” "Stars," Zoe repeated. Her eyes fixed on the night sky. And she did not move again. Thalia lowered her head. Annabeth gulped down a sob, and her father put his hands on her shoulders. I watched as Artemis cupped her hand above Zoe's mouth and spoke a few words in Ancient Greek. A silvery wisp of smoke exhaled from Zoe's lips and was caught in the hand of the goddess. Zoe's body shimmered and disappeared. Artemis stood, said a kind of blessing, breathed into her cupped hand and released the silver dust to the sky. It flew up, sparkling, and vanished. For a moment I didn't see anything different. Then Annabeth gasped. Looking up in the sky, I saw that the stars were brighter now. They made a pattern I had never noticed before—a gleaming constellation that looked a lot like a girl's figure—a girl with a bow, running across the sky. I knew it was Zoe. "Let the world honor you, my Huntress," Artemis said. "Live forever in the stars." It wasn't easy saying our good-byes. The thunder and lightning were still boiling over Mount Tamalpais in the north. Artemis was so upset she flickered with silver light. She the turned to us "I must return to Olympus immeadiatly, but before that . . ." She looked at me "Bianca di Angelo, Zoe chose you as her sucessor, and now you will lead the hunt until your death in honourable battle. Do you accept?" I looked over to Percy and Thalia, then nodded like they wanted me to take it. I looked back at Artemis "I do my lady". Family Reunions Are Always Worth It Percy's P.O.V. "Bianca!" Nico yelled when he saw her enter the camp. He ran stright for her like he wanted to tackle her, but he ended up hugging her. I walked in behind watching as Nico smothered his sister, I also noticed something new about him, like his sister, there olive coloured skins were getting paler, like ther dad's skin. Nico opened his eyes and mouthed to me 'you kept your promise', then closing his eyes again. Nico and Bianca let go of each other and began discussing about what happened to each other. "I got this for you" Bianca said giving Nico the Hades Mythomagic statue. His eyes light up like a small flame in a cave, but he was happy that he got it. "Thanks sis". I figured that they had a lot to talk about so I left them be, as they walked together towards the lake. Trivia *This was made by AdamantiumBladez, using most of the storyline from 'Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse' by Rick Roirdan. Category:AdamantiumBladez Category:Fan Fiction Category:What If